The MLB season is set to continue when the Los Angeles Dodgers travel to take on the Washington Nationals in the second of a three-game run in the capital.
The Dodgers have begun their season in fine form with a 9-3 record coming into this game, while the Nationals are struggling and have gone 4-6 so far.
We’ll take a look at the match-up and provide you with our best free MLB betting picks as we try to earn you some extra cash while you take in all the action on the field.
Los Angeles Dodgers v Washington Nationals information
Tuesday, 8th April 2025
18:45 ET
Nationals Park, Washington DC
Live on MLB.TV
Los Angeles Dodgers season so far
The reigning World Series champions started their season in perfect fashion despite an earlier start than most, as they claimed consecutive wins over the Chicago Cubs during the MLB Tokyo Series.
They returned to Dodger Stadium a little over a week later to take on the Detroit Tigers on opening weekend and claimed a 5-4 win, before two more wins against Detroit in the following days 8-5 (10 innings) and 7-3 to move to 5-0 for the season.
Next up was a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves where 6-1, 3-1 and 6-5 wins saw them move on to 8-0 with very little going against them, proving their status as favorites to go on and win the World Series once again.
However, LA suffered their first defeat of the season in their next game against the Philadelphia Phillies on the road as the lost 2-3, before claiming a revenge victory the next day with a 3-1 win on the road. That was short-lived though as the third game between the two saw a sensational 7-8 win for Philadelphia.
They then made it three defeats in four games in the first clash between these two sides, coming into this game with a 9-3 record.
Washington have had a difficult time of things so far this season, and it started poorly when they took on the Philadelphia Phillies in their opening three games.
A ten inning game on the opening day led to a 3-7 defeat, before the rematch days later saw a heavy 6-11 loss at home. The Nationals finally claimed their first win of the season with a 5-1 win in game three, before their schedule took them on the road to take on the Toronto Blue Jays.
There they couldn’t get their offense going and they fell to three consecutive defeats, losing 2-5 in game one, 3-5 in game two and 2-4 in the final clash to make it four consecutive games with defeat.
However, Washington responded to that when they returned in front of their home crowd against the Arizona Diamondbacks as they claimed a 4-3 win – with Mitchell Parker moving to 2-0 in the process. They then claimed a second consecutive win for the first time this season with a 5-4 win, before their win over the Dodgers last time out left them with a record of 4-6 coming into this game.
The Dodgers are going through their first rocky patch of the season with two wins and two defeats in their last four games, but this is the perfect mini-series to get them back on track.
Teoscar Hernandez has started the season in great fashion with 13 runs while hitting .268 with four home runs before the first game between these two teams on Monday, while Tommy Edman has also hit five home runs this season.
Then you remember they also have the great Shohei Ohtani on their roster, and he is batting a .268 with a double, three home runs and nine walks to prove their firepower should be more than enough to deal with a relatively poor Washington team.
So far this season they have been the favorites in 11 games and won eight of those, while also winning one when considered to be underdogs by the bookmakers. They’re also 5-1 in games where their odds have been -186 or more on the moneyline, while the Nationals have won all four of their games this season while being underdogs.
Their roster is stacked, and they have far too much firepower against a weak opponent to not score big and come away with a relatively comfortable victory. Defeat last time out means they’ll be pushing for a victory even harder this time too. At -182 the value is excellent too considering the circumstances, so take them to get the job done.
For an added bonus the Over 8 runs line looks enticing too at -110, and is something to consider if you want slightly better value.
Daniel is a football writer who has a great thirst for the Premier League and other major European leagues. A lover of the beautiful game and a firm believer that the eye test is better than statistics. Also an avid MMA fan.